Background: Three months ago I bleached my hair white using home bleach. The result looked OK, but kind of fried my hair. Then this week I got sick of the blonde and had it dyed back to red at the salon. It looks great, but the texture leaves something to be desired. (Think, “Bale of Hay At End of Summer”.) I’m thinking my tub of Herbal Essences conditioner is not going to cut it.
Does anyone have any recommendations for serious conditioner for seriously fried hair? I’m thinking maybe one of those deep conditioning leave-in types of products, but I am pretty clueless on this topic, so I’m not really sure what I’m looking for. Thoughts?
The Pantene deep conditioner is v good. I don’t have the exact name of it handy but it has worked well on my chlorine and sun damaged hair. It isn’t a leave-in, just leave it on for 3 minutes in the shower.
As much as I hate to spend money, I actually do spend it on salon-brand conditioners. I just don’t use them every single day, and I don’t use the shampoos. I’ve dyed my hair about once a month or so for probably 10 years and it’s pretty healthy despite all the chemicals I’ve dumped on my head. What I tend to do is have a bottle of either Nexxus Humectress (tres expensive, though) or another super-moisturizing type on hand, and alternate it every 3 or 4 days with any of the available anti-frizz conditioners. I also religiously use Paul Mitchell “The Condidioner”, which is a leave-in that works wonders for me. I have naturally curly hair that frizzes up without this or a similar combination. Did the sylist who colored your hair recommend anything to you?
Unrelated - ceramic styling tools seem to actually make my hair smoother looking and feeling, as opposed to plain metal ones. This is a recent discovery for me and I’m thrilled with the results.
“Infusium”. Incredibly good. Takes hair to soft levels never imagined.
An additional note: Check labels because some are best for color treated or permed hair. And buy a product to follow up after showering that is sprayed on like a hair spray - commonly called a ‘leave in conditioner’ or ‘leave in conditioner managing spray’.
There is a chance you hair is beyond help, in which case I would highly reccmmend a good hair cut, especially with some layering by a pro, as this will give some lift and life to hopeless hair. Damaged hair is much better trimmed down.
I’ve actually heard that Pantene weakens your hair. It makes it soft and manageable by weakening it. My personal favorite conditioners are (from cheap to expensive):
Aussie - Moisturizing and 3 minute miracle
St. Ives: the deep mint repair conditioner is fabulous.
Back to Basics: Honey and Green tea are great
John Frieda - his conditioners are magic especially the leave-in anti frizz one
Biogenol - $25 salon conditioner worth every penny
Philster, I second the Infusium spray-on stuff. I use it almost daily. Once in a while I’ll use the rinse-out stuff. This stuff is pretty amazing. Especially when you can’t afford to get the salon stuff all the time.
MsWhatsit,
I vote for Burt’s Bees Avocado Butter Hair Conditioner. It’s like the old VO5 guck but actually smells good. Use that for a while until your hair gets unfried. I also use Cholesterol every few weeks, I have extremely curly hair and that really works on frizz.
-Snowcarpet
Thermasilk has a conditioner that comes with a cap … you use your blowdryer to heat up the cap & your hair … I haven’t tried it but I’ve heard it’s great.
If you colour, I’ve heard that using a deep oil treatment is NOT a good idea, at least not within the first couple of weeks after colouring, because it can actually “pull” your hair colour out. But after a couple of weeks, it’s an amazing product (and CHEAP). I’m thinking it’s Alberto VO5.
When it comes to the health of your hair, I believe that a good salon conditioner is worth the investment. In the long run, it doesn’t really cost you more, because it’s richer, so you use less of it than you would of a cheaper brand. (Bad grammar, I realize!).
Leave in conditioners are also great as long as your hair isn’t too fine or “flat” …
Often I’ll slather the Pantene Pro-V 3 Minute Miracle into my DRY hair, comb it through, twist it into a knot ontop of my head, and leave it in overnight … it makes an amazing difference!
I never use anything on my hair but really good salon type products. I know it sounds like an unecessary expense but I used to have really dry brittle hair that I couldn’t grwo past my shoulder because the split ends were so bad. I color my hair, blow dry, use a curling iron, gel, stay in the sun, highlights…just about everything that’s bad and now my hair is about 4 inches from my waist and is still healthy looking. I SWEAR using good shampoos and conditioners makes all the difference in te world.
I use Biolagoe shampoo for color treated hair, conditioner for dry hair and once I am done I put just a little bit more conditioner in just on the ends while it is still wet. BEfoe I blow dry, after I have towel dried I use Biosilk before I blow dry. It’s a lot but it keeps it from getting dry.
If it’s already really damaged, you might need to get a good cut to remove the damaged ends but go to a salon to see if you can get a good deep conditioner.
Not like the other ChiDopers could tell from my frizzy hair today, but usually I use Bed Head’s Control Freak conditioner. It’s yummy-smelling and rich, and does a good job of smoothing out hair. They also make a Control Freak shampoo and “serum”, which is basically a leave-in conditioner (when wet) or hair gel (when dry).
PANTENE!! PANTENE!! PANTENE!! Bless the Lord for Pantene!! The silky smooth (green and white bottle) is the friggin’ best! It just loves my hair and my hair just loves it. It really nurishes my locks and it smells so good. My boyfriend loves running his hands through it and always wants to smell it… hmmm, maybe he’s a lil’ kinky? But still, Pantene rocks!
Sally’s Beauty Supply sells a generic version of Paul Mitchell’s Tea Tree Oil conditioner, and I love it!! (It does smell a little medicinal, but it makes my hair feel wonderful). The Paul Mitchell costs $16.00 a bottle, vs $5.00 a bottle for the generic.
I have had a couple of hairdressers tell me something like this, but wouldn’t swear that it’s true. I’d say, if you’ve been using the stuff for a long time, and your hair still looks and feels great, then it’s fine.
I’ve always found that those 3 minutes treatment packs (the St. Ives mint stuff feels great!) to be nice for when my hair feels really fried. For regular use, I like just regular grocery store shampoos and conditioners (like Herbal Essences or Thermasilk). I find the high end stuff leaves my hair too greasy feeling and flat. I do, however, LOVE the spray in/leave in Infusium. If I had a job and money to burn, I would waste my money on that stuff!
I swear by Kelp Help deep conditioner. I think it’s made at John Frieda? Comes in a green tub and is available at Target for about $6. I just slather it on at night now and then, and leave it in until I shampoo in the morning.
Have to second Biolage shampoo and conditioners, too. The conditioning balm that comes in the tub would be good for fried hair.
I had serious unmanageable frizz problems for a long time with my dye-fried hair. Now I use a regular cheapo conditioner, and this stuff called InstantRepair ProVitamin serum (or something like that). I get it at Wal-Mart. It’s basically a goo that you put in after you shower, when your hair’s still wet, and just leave in. It has done wonder for my hair. It’s amazing. I think it’s about 5 bucks a bottle and one bottle lasts quite awhile.